Brothers in all but Blood
by rasEnshur1KEn
Summary: What if Fugaku and Mikoto adopted Naruto into their clan because of Mikoto's friendship with Kushina? What if Naruto and Sasuke were really brothers by law? How would the two be different after Itachi killed the clan? NaruSaku, other pairings later. Updated monthly, chapters get longer after massacre.
1. Prologue: A Different Beginning

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor am I affiliated in any way with it, other than being a fan. Those rights belong to Masashi Kishimoto. **

**A/N: So this is a new fic, my third attempt at writing a story. My first story, The Element of Time, is still going strong, though I have pretty much given up on Dissidia and a Bit More. Here's to hoping that this story is more like my first!**

**The premise of this story is that Mikoto and Fugaku adopt Naruto early on, so he, Sasuke and Itachi are actual brothers in all but blood, hence the title. The massacre will still happen, but Sasuke and Naruto will be spared. The question is, how will Naruto and Sasuke be different in this story after the event?**

**Prologue: A Different Beginning**

"Enter," Hiruzen Sarutobi said as he cleared his desk of the devil reincar- er, I mean paperwork. Due to the death of Hiruzen's successor a few nights ago, Hiruzen was forced back into the office he thought he would be free of for good. And the paperwork was worse than it had ever been because of all the matters that had arisen from the Kyuubi attack. The door opened and two people walked into the office. "Ah, Mikoto-san and Fugaku-san, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" the aged Hokage asked politely.

"It's about the demon container, Naruto I believe he was named?" Fugaku replied.

"I wish to take Naruto in," Mikoto stated and Hiruzen blinked.

"I am not so sure that is wise," Hiruzen replied.

"And just why not?" Mikoto demanded. "I am aware of the fact that Naruto is Kushina and Minato's son, I was one of the people she confided in with her pregnancy. I knew that the father was Minato as well, and it is glaringly obvious why the one the Kyuubi was sealed into had to be Naruto. Only an Uzumaki could handle having the chakra of that particular Bijuu, Kushina told me that much, though I think she was boasting at least a bit. And I have no intention of letting my best friend's son go into the orphanage where he will be surely mistreated by those who can't tell the difference between a scroll and the kunai sealed in it."

"I understand your feeling on this matter, but if word got to Iwagakure that the son of Minato Namikaze existed after what the Yellow Flash had done to so many of their forces, then Naruto would not be safe. Not only that, but the villagers already have suspicions about a member of the Uchiha clan having controlled the Kyuubi during the attack, because it is well known that Madara had control over it during the fight with the Shjodaime. If Naruto were to be taken in by your clan, that could very well serve to cement such thoughts."

"I don't think anyone in Iwa knows of the relationship between Kushina and the Yondaime," Mikoto replied. "They have kept the marriage secret for a while now, only telling the people closest to us, and even if the dots get connected, I doubt that Iwa is in good enough condition to risk starting a war over it."

"And besides," Fugaku said. "Even if an assassin comes for the boy, do you really think the Uchiah clan is incapable of protecting him? And as for your worries about my clan, we have dealt with the discrimination of the Nidaime for years. It won't hurt us too much more to take in the Kyuubi's jinchuriki."

Hiruzen sighed as he realized that they were not going to let this go. He deliberated for a few moments before he looked up at Mikoto. "Are you certain that you want to do this?" he asked her, his eyes boring into hers.

"As certain as I can be Sandaime-Sama," Mikoto replied, meeting his gaze.

"Very well then," Hiruzen said. "I shall make the arrangements for the adoption." He sighed and mentally sobbed, _"Great, more paperwork for me!" _as Mikoto and her husband left the room.

…

A few days later, Itachi was in hell and banging his head against a wall. His younger brother Sasuke had been crying nonstop for the past hour, and nothing Itachi had done had gotten the brat to calm down. Don't get him wrong, he loved his younger brother a lot, but it was ridiculous what he was putting up with.

Fortunately, he heard Sasuke start laughing, and he sighed with relief as he stopped banging his head, which was what Sasuke had been laughing at. So naturally, once Itachi had stopped banging his head, Sasuke started crying again, causing Itachi to get right back to banging his head, praying the crying would stop again. It did not take the young Uchiha long to connect the dots and he muttered, "Great, if I don't continually bang my head, he will just keep crying. Either way, I get a headache."

His musings were cut short when his parents came home, Mikoto carrying a bundle with a blonde haired child a few months younger than Sasuke in it. She set the new baby into Sasuke's crib and picked up the crying Uchiha baby, calming him instantly. _"How does she do that?!" _Itachi thought with exasperation before he asked, "Who is that, Mother?" He was pointing at the new child Mikoto had held.

Mikoto set Sasuke down next to the other baby before she smiled. "This is Naruto. He is going to be another brother for you, Itachi."

**A/N: So how was the prologue? To my fans with the Element of Time who read this story, don't worry, I will be prioritizing that one until it ends. This story will be updated every one to two weeks, and The Element of Time will get updated more often.**

**All chapters after this one will be longer, at least 3000 words a piece hopefully, but I will need views and reviews. Lots of them if this story is going to continue. So I hope you all enjoy this story enough to review it!**


	2. Chapter 1: Little Brothers

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor am I affiliated in any way with it, other than being a fan. Those rights belong to Masashi Kishimoto. **

**A/N: Sorry if it took a little longer than you all wanted, I have been focusing on my other story, but let's continue with Brothers in All But Blood. This chapter will mainly be about some comic relief, but will cover Itachi becoming a genin and the first year of Naruto's and Sasuke's life.**

**Chapter 1: Little Brothers**

"Why, oh why, are my parents always so busy?" Itachi complained to no one in particular as he changed Naruto, and got a stream of piss right in the face. Sputtering, he wiped himself off with a towel, ignoring the blonde baby's laughter, Sasuke's laughter added to the mix. "Yeah, laugh it up, both of you," he muttered as he replaced Naruto in the crib. "I swear, one of these days, when you are older, I will get you back good for this."

Sasuke donned an uncomfortable expression, one that made Itachi realize that he needed to be burped. He immediately put his younger brother over his shoulder and patted the boy's back, before feeling something wet running down his shoulder. "I forgot the blasted towel again, didn't I?"

Sasuke giggled and Itachi began using swear words he heard his father use whenever it came to the paperwork that came with being a clan head. Unfortunately, that is when his mother chose to come home and overheard the six-year old using cuss words. He ate dinner that night standing up.

…

Sasuke's first birthday came, and the turnout was a good portion of the Uchiha clan. Shisui, who was a couple of years older than his best friend and already a genin, looked at Itachi and said, "Hard to believe you've been a brother for a year, huh?"

"Yeah it is," Itachi said. "It actually feels as if it's been longer. As much as I love my siblings, they seem to truly enjoy tormenting every waking moment of my life."

Shisui sniggered before saying, "Are you looking forward to having a shot at graduating the Academy five years before most genin do?"

"Of course. Once I become a shinobi of the Leaf, I will surely do the clan proud, and Father may actually acknowledge me a little rather than focus so much on his duties as both a clan head and chief of the KMPF."

"I should warn you, it's not all that glamorous at first. The missions feel more like chores, before you are fighting bandits who are so weak, it's like they want to lose their lives to you. And recently, I found out about a recent horror."

"Hm?"

"You see this?" Shisui pulled up a part of his sleeve to show his arm bandaged.

"Did a bandit get in a lucky shot on you? You must be losing your touch," Itachi teased.

"No, it's… actually a bit more embarrassing. You know that the Fire Daimyo has a wife?"

"Madam Shijimi?"

"Yep. Well, she actually recently got a kitten she named Tora. The funny thing is, despite, or rather _because of, _the suffocating amount of affection she gives the cat, Tora keeps making a break for freedom. This leads to her paying a good deal of money to Konoha to constantly dispatch genin teams to catch the little devil. Trouble is, he never wants to come quietly."

"So you actually got your arm scratched up by a little pussy cat? Wimp," Itachi sniggered, causing his friend to glare daggers at him.

"I can't wait for you to have your turn. That cat is the devil reincarnate."

"I thought that was paperwork, if what the Hokage says is accurate."

"You just wait, you may not be the type to hold a grudge, but I would bet my next paycheck that when it's your time to bring Tora in, you will feel pleasure to see him being squeezed half to death."

"Why would he be squeezed half to death?"

"The suffocating affection I mentioned from his owner."

A piece of cake thrown by Sasuke splattered the back of Itachi's head, earning laughter from everyone present, with the exception of Fugaku, though even he seemed to be fighting a losing battle against a small smile. Itachi sighed and said, "After these two, I am ready for any pain in the neck."

…..

"Mom, Dad, I'm home," a proud Itachi declared as he came into the house, his shiny new forehead protector tied around the seven year old's head.

"Congratulations!" Mikoto shouted as she ran into the room and threw Itachi into a hug that threatened to break Itachi's ribs.

"Can't… breathe…" Itachi gasped before he was released.

"Sorry Honey, but I am just so proud of you!"

"What's all the fuss about?" Fugaku demanded as he entered the house himself, having just gotten home after a busy morning.

"You haven't heard?" Mikoto asked. "Our little Itachi has graduated with even better scores than all of the other genin! Even those who were five years older than him!"

"Really?" Fugaku asked before he turned his head to look in a corner. "Well, that explains where Sasuke got that headband he's playing with," he continued with a hint of a smile.

With a sudden look of alarm, Itachi felt his head to find that his headband was indeed missing, and he whipped his head to find that Sasuke had really gotten a hold of it somehow without his noticing. "You little rascal!" Itachi growled as he quickly grabbed his younger brother before the toddler could put the headband in his mouth.

…

Naruto's first birthday came soon after, and Itachi walked into the house after his mission, a gauze bandage over his cheek, and with a slightly grumpy expression. Shisui looked at his friend and smirked as Itachi handed over the paycheck for the mission he had taken.

"You're right, that cat deserved every ounce of pain it gets from his owner," Itachi said. "Even if the reason it puts up such a fight is understandable."

Shisui chuckled… then sputtered as Naruto pulled the same stunt Sasuke had by throwing cake at the back of Itachi's head, only this time, Itachi sensed it coming and ducked, causing the cake to nail Shisui in the face. "I think Naruto is my favorite brother," Itachi joked as Shisui tried to ignore the laughing from the clan members attending and wiped his face with a napkin.

…

"So that old perv is not going to show up for his own godson's first birthday?" Mikoto demanded to Fugaku outside the house.

"Apparently not," Fugaku replied. "He does not want to risk it becoming common knowledge his association with the boy yet, and also claimed to be busy with maintaining his spy network, and also that distasteful "research" of his."

"Only thing he's researching is ways to get yourself painfully killed by the female population of the world," Mikoto muttered.

"It's actually probably for the best he does not associate with Naruto just yet. He is still a rather easy target at his age, and even with the protection of our clan, he may eventually fall prey to those with grudges against his father. Until he is a shinobi capable of defending himself, it is for the best to keep this secret, and Jiraiya showing up for the birthday of his godson could very well raise suspicions that may make their way to the ears of those people."

"I still don't like Naruto being ignored by his own father's sensei."

"Neither do I, but we have to prioritize his safety before anything else."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right," Mikoto sighed.

**A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and are looking forward to next one. Next one will have Itachi being told a secret after an incident.**

** As I said before, the Element of Time is my main priority right now. However, if I were to get twenty reviews for this story, I might be motivated to get the next chapter up sooner.**

**So please Review!**


	3. Chapter 2: Naruto's Secret

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor am I affiliated in any way with it, other than being a fan. Those rights belong to Masashi Kishimoto. **

**A/N: Sorry this took me a while, I have been a little busy. Now on with chapter 2!**

**Chapter 2: Naruto's Secret**

"Will you two clowns come back here with that?!" a nine year old Itachi demanded as he chased his two brothers around the house, Naruto cackling as he wore Itachi's headband. Itachi was just about to catch Naruto, but the blonde took the headband off and tossed it to Sasuke who was on the opposite end of the room.

Itachi moaned in exasperation. He really hated it when he was the monkey in the middle with the headband being the object of his capture attempts. Trying to keep those two under control was among the most difficult endeavors he could imagine. They were like cockroaches, you corner one, the other runs in the opposite direction.

"Come on guys, if you give me my headband back, I will take you both out for ice cream," Itachi begged, as he and his wallet wept anime tears. Giving these two ice cream would be a major pounding against his savings. Though thankfully not as much as the unexplainable ability of Naruto's to eat over twenty bowls of ramen in one go and still have room for whatever Mother had made that night

Needless to say, they both accepted his offer, and slapped high fives as Sasuke tossed the headband back to Itachi. "Ice Cweam! Ice Cweam!" they chanted in anticipation. Itachi sighed inrelief. How these two three year olds could possibly have the energy to keep a shinobi, albeit a genin, on his toes for so long was beyond him.

….

"Here you are little Sasuke-kun," the seemingly kind lady at the ice cream stand said to Sasuke. She was clearly a new employee, but seemed competent. "And will that be all for you Itachi-kun?" she asked.

"You have not given Naruto his order yet," Itachi said with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm sorry, we don't serve his kind here," the lady said, her face losing the kindness previously shown.

"His kind?"

"Nothing you need to worry about, so will you have anything else, or will you and your brother take the vermin back to your home?"

"On second thought, I think I will have the chili pepper flavor," Itachi said as a vindictive idea came to him. He was usually calm for a nine year old, but after several occasions of villagers showing endless discrimination towards his brother, overcharging Itachi for goods that were for the blonde, refusing service altogether, some stores refusing to let Itachi in unless he left Naruto out, and there were several small "accidents" that came close to seriously injuring Naruto. These included, but were not limited to, a pot almost landing on the boy's head from several stories above, a cart losing control on the streets and almost running the poor boy over, and some random civilian tripping the boy at the top of steps, only for Itachi to catch Naruto and threaten to tie a cord to said civilian and kick him down said steps and pull him back up with the cord so he could repeat the process until his leg got tired from kicking if said civilian even thought to try such a stunt again. He was finally ready to snap.

"That's an unusual flavor for ice cream, but we still serve it on occasion," the lady said as she gave Itachi the order and he paid for both of the ice creams. And then he shoved the cone in her face, splattering the spicy cream in her mouth and eyes.

"Oops," Itachi said, though he was not particularly sorry to see the lady shriek like a banshee and try to wipe the stuff from her eyes. Sasuke laughed at the girl as the manager ran out and gave Itachi a glare.

The Uchiha boy shrugged as he watched Sasuke offer to share his ice cream with the downcast Naruto. He then used a water style jutsu to blast the spicy ice cream of the lady's face, not cruel enough to risk giving her permanent sight loss.

….

"Care to explain to me why you are being charged with assaulting a civilian woman?" Fugaku later asked Itachi with his arms crossed. Itachi had the grace to look slightly regretful at this point. Mikoto was giving him a stern look of her own.

"I just snapped," Itachi replied. "Naruto has been the target of several attacks by the civilians for most of his life, both verbal, and physical. It finally got to me."

Fugaku's expression softened slightly before he said, "Regardless, such behavior is unacceptable for a shinobi, and the Hokage has had to issue a punishment."

"For the next month, you will be banned from taking any missions, with only one exception," Mikoto said. "And that would be the one D Rank that brings in more money than all other kinds of D Ranks combined."

Itachi paled as he realized exactly what his mother was talking about. "Please, not that damn cat again."

"Language mister!" Mikoto said. Then her expression softened as well. "I don't think you deserve to be punished for this either, but you just have to remember that the civilians can think what they want about your brother."

Both of Itachi's parents were on their way out of the dining room when Itachi spoke without thinking. "No they can't. Because it's the Kyuubi, and not Naruto they have thoughts about."

There was a crash as Mikoto dropped the glass she had been about to put on the counter, and Fugaku turned to Itachi with shock evident on his face. "What… what are you talking about my son? The Yondaime killed the Kyuubi three years ago."

"I'm not stupid Father," Itachi said as he crossed his arms. "A few months ago, I wondered why people showed Naruto such discrimination, so I looked into Naruto as much as I could. I had trouble getting into several of his records, because the Sandaime had kept a good deal of them under lock and key, but I eventually realized that the days we celebrated Naruto's birthday were the anniversary of the Kyuubi's attack on the village.

"At first, I wrote it off as a coincidence that Naruto should have been born on that night, but I ultimately decided it was my only lead, so I looked into the Kyuubi itself. And I eventually managed to find a few books in the shinobi library's unclassified section that had clearly been missed when the Hokage tried to abolish such information. Once I read that the Kyuubi was the strongest of nine creatures called Bijuu, and that outright killing one was impossible, because they always came back after a few years, I knew that the tale that the Yondaime killed it could not be true.

"So then I had to ask, how did he stop it? Well, I kept reading, and I eventually found the term jinchuriki, and that's when several of the pieces fell into place. After all, wasn't the Yondaime renowned for his mastery of fuinjutsu? Add that to the fact that there is a striking resemblance to Naruto and the Yondaime, and that the Hokage was very honorable and would not have sacrificed someone else's child, and that rose even more suspicions. And Naruto's whisker marks are a dead giveaway as well."

Mikoto and Fugaku looked nervously at each other before Mikoto said, "You could really give the Naras a run for their money." Itachi snorted.

"Please, once I had the sense to look for the pieces, I could hardly fail to put them together. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Naruto is a jinchuriki."

"Even though you are one, but now we need to figure out what to do about the fact that you know an S Rank secret," Fugaku said. "Of course, the Sandaime's decree only says that we are not allowed to talk about the secret, so since you figured it out on your own, even if he finds out that you know about it, we should still be clear. Just don't let on that you know, just to be safe. We don't want more trouble than we need."

"Just one question," Itachi said. "Why would the Yondaime have sealed the Kyuubi in a child? There were surely plenty of shinobi that would be willing to keep the beast at bay."

"Perhaps, but the Kyuubi's chakra is so different from humans, and even the other Bijuu, that if someone's chakra coils had already developed, they would not have been able to adapt to the other chakra source, and they would have eventually died," Fugaku said.

"I see."

…

"I can't believe that you and your brother get to go on a B Rank mission while I am stuck here as Tora Fodder for a month," Itachi told Shisui a few days later as the latter was finishing his packing.

"I'm not saying the lady didn't have it coming, but you do need to control your temper," Shisui responded. "Think of this as a lesson."

"Yeah, a lesson to never get a cat," Itachi muttered, causing the other Uchiha to snigger.

"I'm glad I passed the chunin exams, otherwise I would have to help you with that. Now I get to laugh at you as you fight on the frontlines in the war between the cat and the village's genin."

"You hate me don't you."

"Nope, I just like to see you in a bit of pain is all. It's funny."

Itachi playfully gave his best friend a rude gesture. "You had better get going, Jiro was never known for his patience."

"Hard to believe we are related," Shisui chuckled as he headed out the door.

Itachi sighed as he reached for his tea, knowing that sooner or later, Tora would escape again, and he would be the one on hand to stop the cat before it got too far. He really needed to become a chunin. Before his hand reached the teacup, it cracked slightly. Itachi paused as a wave of nervousness washed over him.

**A/N: Here is my response to a few reviews in this story. **

**nhalltheway:**

**...short...  
Really getting interesting so I hope it gets longer next time :)**

**rasEnshur1Ken: **

**Yeah, the first few chapters will be rather short, but they will at least get EOT length before long. Just bear with it please.**

**nhalltheway:**

**Hey I finished reading your other "only" naruhina story... So think it won't hurt if this one turned out to be a naruhina, right?!**

Oh and if the pairing is decided please put it as memos before the main story. I don't read stories aside from naruhina...  
Of to next chapter :))

**rasEnshur1Ken: **

**Sorry to hear that, and yes, I prefer NaruHina myself, but I am still debating that for this story.**

**DragonGodSlayerMasterHokage:**

**you should have them have a prank war**

**rasEnshur1Ken: **

**You should add MindReader to your profile name!**

**Shiro:**

**...I swear Sasuke will be the death of Itachi! XD Naruto is not far behind. Spreading the love to their older brother probably. And coming along spreading it to on the face, stealing headbands, burping on his brother shoulder its no wonder Itachi pokes Sasuke on the forehead. Its probably secret payback from all the babysitting he had to support. haha! thank you for writing this chapter!**

**rasEnshur1Ken: **

**That's how I planned to portray the forehead poke, and before you ask, Naruto will get it too, sometimes at the same time as Sasuke.**

**Titokhan:**

**well, here's one review..**

Naruto's already copying Sasuke.. isn't that cute.

It's a good thing Itachi is really good at keeping secrets isn't it then? Tora's THAT old? it really must be some kind of demon cat to still be that lively at that age

**rasEnshur1Ken: **

**That liveliness likely comes from all the exercise he gets fleeing from genin, lol. And I don't know how old he is, I just thought it would be fun to write that his hijinks were bad for Itachi at some point too.**

**So I wanted to bring up the question of pairings for this story. I would personally prefer to do a NaruHina above all, but I would also be interested to try my hand at NaruSaku. Let me know what you guys think on this, and any other ideas would also be welcome!**

**A few tragedies will occur next chapter, but not much time will have passed.**

**Please Review!**


	4. Chapter 3: Tragedies of the Village

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor am I affiliated in any way with it, other than being a fan. Those rights belong to Masashi Kishimoto. **

**A/N: Here is the latest chapter of Brothers in All But Blood! Sorry it took so long, but I kind of got into a major part of the Element of Time, and wanted to get it done. **

**Chapter 3: Tragedies of the Village**

Itachi rushed straight at his father in the training grounds, Sharingan with three tomoe active. Fugaku stood seemingly impassive until the last moment when he caught Itachi's kick and tried to flip his son. Itaci went with it and planted his hands on the ground and used that leverage to wrench his caught foot out of Fugaku's grip and tried to kick him with the other foot. Fugaku deflected that foot and threw a punch that caught his son in the gut.

Itachi grabbed Fugaku's fist and used the leverage to turn in the air and get back on his feet before throwing a punch that Fugaku caught, despite having one of his own arms trapped by Itachi. He then launched Itachi, freeing himself as he did so. Itachi flipped through the air and managed to land on his feet. He dashed Fugaku again and acted as if he was going for another straight punch. But just as Fugaku moved to counter, Itachi dropped to the ground and attempted a sweeping kick. The attempt was successful, as Itachi struck Fugaku's legs and almost managed to knock his father off balance.

Fugaku staggered for a second and Itachi leapt up to try landing an uppercut on Fugaku's chin. Fugaku caught the fist and flipped Itachi hard onto the ground, knocking the wind out of Itachi. "That's enough for today," Fugaku said as he let Itachi up. "To think, you can already land a hit on me at nine years old. I think you will be ready for the chunin exams in a month."

"I think I will pass for now," Itachi said, and Fugaku narrowed his eyes.

"May I ask why?"

"There are a good number of shinobi who die in those exams, and I want to be absolutely certain I am prepared for them before I make the same mistake. So I will wait until I can land a blow on you with your Sharingan active. Besides, even if I'm ready, I am not 100 percent certain that my teammates are."

Fugaku snorted. "Lofty goal there boy. If you can manage to hit me with my Sharingan on, you would be ready to try for jonin. But you are free to set your own standards."

"Fugaku-Sama!" a runner of the clan shouted as he ran to the two. He reached Fugaku and planted his hands on his knees, panting.

"What is it?" Fugaku asked.

"Shisui has returned from his mission, but he was seriously injured!"

"What happened!?" Itachi demanded.

"Apparently, the client was a higher priority assassination target than even he was aware of, and the one after him hired missing nin that would have made the mission A rank if it was known that they would be hired. Shisui managed to kill them all and protect the client, but got gravely wounded in the process. Not only that, but the rest of his team was killed, including his brother Jiro!"

Fugaku narrowed his eyes in anger at having lost a clansman.

"No, not Jiro," Itachi muttered.

…

"How are you?" Itachi asked as he entered the hospital ward Shisui had been put in. The young chunin's torso and arms had been bound in bandages, and there had been a small amount of damage to his eyes, so those were wrapped too.

"I've been better physically, but I will live. Mentally…" Shisui said before he trailed off. Itachi knew what Shisui meant. Losing his older brother was bound to be painful.

"How did you manage to kill the missing nin that killed your brother?" Itachi finally asked. Jiro had been one of the village's stronger jonin, a candidate for ANBU.

"I am not sure myself. It was all a blur," Shisui said. Itachi narrowed his eyes as he detected a hint of lying in Shisui's voice. It was like he was trying to hide something.

"Shisui, I can tell that you are keeping something from the rest of us. I know you far better than the rest of the clan. What is the truth?"

"Itachi, I have good reason to keep what happened from the rest of the clan. Please, don't tell anyone else that there is more than the story I have given. I have orders from the Hokage himself to keep this an S Rank secret."

Itachi's eyes widened before they narrowed. "What could be so important about the mission that it had an S Rank secret involved?"

"All I will say is that if something about the mission was made known, the Uchiha clan would find many of its members killing other members of the clan and villagers for something petty."

…..

Shisui was released from the hospital a few days later and spent most of his time locked up at his home, mourning the loss of his brother.

"Big Brother, will Shisui-San get better?" Naruto asked Itachi one morning when Shisui was once again absent from hanging with his friend.

"He just needs a little time," Itachi assured Naruto.

"I miss the Shisui that used to be so cheerful," Sasuke said. "I wish he would be better now."

"I'm afraid it doesn't work that way," Itachi said with a sad smile as he gave Sasuke a poke on the forehead.

"Ow, hey, what was that for?" Sasuke demanded.

"That's just my way of telling you how silly you can be," Itachi said, and Naruto laughed. He stopped laughing when Itachi poked his forehead too.

"Hey!" Naruto shouted in obvious irritation that he got one too.

"That goes for you too Naruto," Itachi said with another smile. "Don't worry though. Shisui will recover. He is a strong shinobi."

…..

Itachi and Shisui stood side by side at Jiro's funeral, both wearing black formal clothing. Strangely enough, despite Jiro's status as an elite jonin, not many other people other thatn the clan showed up for the funeral. But then, the clan still had a rift between it and the village, just one other thing for Itachi's father to seethe over.

Shisui placed his flower on the casket and stepped aside to allow Itachi to do so as well. They then let Naruto and Sasuke follow suit. Though Naruto and Sasuke had not known Jiro particularly well, they were sorry to lose such a great clansman, and someone close to one of their brother's friends.

"I will miss the times we shared," Shisui said, almost to himself, and Itachi put an arm around his shoulder.

"All the more reason to move on and make sure we live our lives for Jiro as well," Itachi said. "Spending the rest of our lives mourning will not help anyone. Jiro died defending the village so the rest of us could have a shot at living peaceful lives. If we let ourselves lose sight of that, then Jiro will have died for naught."

"Yeah, you are right," Shisui said before he smiled at Itachi. "We need to move on with our own lives and not moan about what we can't change."

….

As if Konoha had not suffered a great enough loss of a jonin from a clan, another soon followed. Fugaku told his family that the Hyuuga clan had been forced to surrender the corpse of one of their strongest fighters in order to save the life of the clan head.

Apparently, Kumogakure had sent a few shinobi to Konoha in order to sign a new non-aggression treaty, but it had turned out to be a diversion from the true intentions of the Hidden Cloud Village. They had been in reality trying to gain the Byakugan by kidnapping the heiress of the Hyuuga clan, but the initial plot was foiled by Hiashi, who had caught the man in the act of kidnapping his daughter. It was here that Itachi found himself cursing Hiashi's stupidity as he thought about the event.

Because instead of capturing the target alive, as Hiashi could have easily done, he let his anger get the better of him and killed the man. And when it turned out to be the head ninja from Kumo, said nation demanded recompense for the loss of their shinobi within Konoha. _"Calm and stoic indeed," _Itachi thought with a snort. While it was understandable for Hiashi to lose his temper over the fact that his daughter was being kidnapped, he surly knew full well who he was killing. After all, a mask would have not hidden the man's face from Hiashi's eyes. So Hiashi had knowingly and willingly risked putting the village at war to settle a petty moment of hatred. And now his own brother was paying the price for his lack of foresight.

Itachi sighed. While he hated the fact that the village made the decision to sacrifice one of its greatest shinobi, he knew it was necessary to keep the peace with Kumo. But he could not shake the fact that he could not help but wonder, was peace worth such sacrifices? And would more such sacrifices have to be made for the sake of peace? Itachi supposed he would not know the answer unless faced with such a choice himself. He prayed that he never would be.

**A/N: Review Responses.**

**FlameDragon14:**

**I'm a NaruHina fan the whole way. Personally it would help by adding some drama into the story. I mean the Hyuga and the Uchiha are rivals clans with eye based jutsu. The very idea of one from either clan falling for a member of the other would likely cause quite the scandal in the respective clan; even if the member is one by name only. Personally I don't care if NaruHina is overdone, if it is done well then I will read it.**

**As for Sakura, I've always rather disliked her. I'm really sure why sometimes. During the rescue Kazekage arc I started to respect her a bit but, then she just started crying all the time and not really doing much to help, I mean healing is all well and good but she could at lest help out by throwing things at her enemy with that freakish strength. If she is written well then I can at least respect her but I personally don't think she is the right choice for Naruto romance wise.**

**I could go on but, I'm currently writing from my iPod and its becoming quite the pain so see ya!**

**rasEnshur1Ken:**

**Sakura will not be nearly as useless in this fic, so you won't have to worry about her being a crybaby. She will be more like she was when they fought Sasori more often. **

**RegretxPain:**

**Please, no naru/hina or naru/saku. My least favorite pairings. I want to follow this story until its finished, but those two pairings are nothing more than a story killer to me. My suggestions... erm... naru/ino or naru/fu**

**rasEnshur1Ken:**

**Sorry, not going to do either one of your suggestions, and one element such as pairings should not ruin a good story for anyone. There are good things and bad about every story, and if you say there is one particular element that you do not tolerate, you don't have to read those stories. Sorry, but I am going to do one of the pairings you asked me not to.**

**Titokhan:**

**I'm personally a NaruHina nerd myself, but I can tolerate a well written NaruSaku. **

**SasuHina I generally avoid like the plague, but if you were to put Sasuke in Naruto's place for those early interactions, and have Sasuke have something that resembles Naruto's pain and determination (not the brooding emo avenger). it 'could' work. **

**It's your story though,**

**rasEnshur1Ken:**

**Well, if I do decide to go with SasuHina, I hope I make it work to your satisfaction.**

**So I have made my pairing decision, and it is final so please do not try to talk me out of it. Because I feel that NaruHina is overdone, and I feel I am up to the challenge, I will attempt to write this story as a NaruSaku (Dodges a barrage of projectiles, a good portion of them being unrealistically sized). At any rate, if there are people who absolutely abhor the pairing, and think Sakura is useless and ignored Naruto too much, I won't be writing her as useless, nor will she hate Naruto in the beginning. If you still can't accept the pairing, you can just stop reading and please don't flame me. **

**As for Sasuke, I am still not 100% sure. I have a few ideas that may make a SasuHina pairing realistic, but I am also considering Karin. **

**Next chapter will have Itachi matched up in a chunin exam match for his promotion. **

**Please Review!**


	5. Chapter 4: Chunin at Ten

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor am I affiliated in any way with it, other than being a fan. Those rights belong to Masashi Kishimoto.**

**A/N: Still going strong on the Element of Time, but managed to put this out too.**

**Chapter 4: Chunin at Ten**

"Come on Sasuke, you will have to run faster than that if you want to tag me!" Naruto shouted to his brother, who was actually usually faster than Naruto, but was finding it difficult to keep up with Naruto's stamina level, so was slowing down. Itachi smiled at the antics of his two younger brothers, though a part of him was worried about the exam finals he would have to go through in a matter of days. He was one of five participants in these finals. All three members of his team were in, and one other team had made it this far, though one member dropped out due to severe injuries suffered during the second part of the exam in the Forest of Death. It was lucky that his teammates were able to get him to the tower in time for medical aid that he so desperately needed.

Naruto stopped running for a moment as he spotted a scene he disliked, giving Sasuke the chance to get to him and tap his shoulder. "Tag, you're it," Sasuke managed to pant out before he noticed what Naruto was looking at.

About twenty feet away from them, there was a group of three girls, led by a purple haired one, picking on another one, this one with pink hair and a somewhat large forehead. The words "Little Miss Billboard Brow" were quite audible in the taunting. The girl was actually in tears from the bullying at this point.

Itachi also spotted the bullying, and noted that Naruto was already running at the scene, getting a small smile from the Uchiha. Even at an age this young, Naruto could not stand to see any kind of injustice. It was just one of the things that Itachi respected the young blonde for. He decided to hold off on interfering for the moment, to see just how his surrogate brother would handle the situation.

"Hey leave her alone!" Naruto shouted as he got between the pink haired girl and the three bullies.

"Who the heck are you?" the lead girl demanded.

"Naruto Uzumaki Uchiha!" Naruto replied. "And just who do you think you are?" The pink haired girl looked up in disbelief that someone was defending her.

"Oh yeah, I heard about you," the lead bully replied. "You're the little brat who was adopted into the Uchiha clan. My name's Ami, now if you don't mind, I was simply reminding Little Miss Billboard Brow that she has no business breathing our air."

"Really, I don't see anyone's name on the air, so what makes you think that she has no right to breathe it?"

"Phft, you are just as much of a loser as she is, so it's no wonder you are sticking together, Mister I'm Adopted And No One Likes Me."

"Say what you like about me, but I don't like to see others being bullied, so either leave her alone, or else I'll make you," Naruto said, raising his fists up in a combative pose.

"You would not hit a girl would you?" Ami scoffed, though she looked a little nervous.

"Meh, boy or girl, bullies are all the same to me," Naruto replied. **(A/N: I personally agree with this statement, and not just because I wrote it. I am not sexist at all, and while it takes a lot to make me violent, I draw the line where that happens at the exact same place for both genders. That's what happens when one demands equal treatment. They shouldn't then be allowed to abuse the fact that it is frowned upon to hit girls to get away with whatever the hell they feel like.) **

Not used to the fact that there was a boy in front of them that was willing to fight them if they pressed the issue, Ami and her little group decided it was time to beat a hasty retreat. "Figures," Naruto said as he lowered his hands, looking a little disappointed.

Sasuke then walked up and clobbered his brother on the head. "What were you thinking, going up against three people at once?" Sasuke demanded. "You could have gotten hurt you moron!"

"Big Brother Itachi was watching though," Naruto replied as he massaged his head where Sasuke had bonked him. Sasuke had to concede the point there. "Hey," Naruto said as he turned to the pink haired girl and held his hand out to shake. "My name's Naruto, and who are you?"

"S-Sakura Haruno," Sakura replied as she shakily raised one hand to shake Naruto's.

"Sauke Uchiha," Sasuke said as he extended his hand to shake Sakura's.

"Why were those girls even making fun of you anyway?" Naruto asked.

"It's because of my abnormally large forehead," Sakura teared up.

"What's wrong with having a bit of a larger head than most other people? It doesn't look that much bigger to me," Naruto said. "In fact, I just think that means you are smart, because you have a big brain!"

"Goof," Sasuke muttered, but Naruto's words had the intended effect and Sakura cheered up immensely.

"Sakura!" a female voice shouted and all three kids jumped up and saw a blonde haired woman running in their direction. "What have I told you about going to this park without supervision?"

"That is my mother," Sakura groaned.

Mebuki **(A/N: that is the name of Sakura's mother if you did not already know that) **stopped a few feet from Naruto and Sasuke, while Naruto lowered his head, knowing by now what to expect from adults in this village. Mebuki grabbed her daughter's arm and made her get up, before looking at Naruto and Sasuke, and asking, "And why are you even near that boy?" He gaze was fixed on Naruto.

"He defended her against a few bullies," Itachi said as he Shunshinned right in front of Mebuki. "Now, if you don't mind, I suggest leaving with your daughter before you say something I will feel obligated to make you regret. And I would advise against trying to turn your child against my brother, or else I will make certain you regret that as well."

Mebuki was no fool. While she was fairly talented genin, she was not chunin level and knew that despite being only ten, Itachi was easily stronger than her. The killing intent he was directing at her was not helping much either. Needless to say, she left without saying a word and Sakura cast a glance back at Naruto's direction.

Naruto sighed and said, "Why don't the adults ever let their kids play with me, or even interact at all?"

"That is something you are not yet ready to know Naruto. You will be told someday."

…..

About a week later, Itachi faced his opponent in the arena. It was the final match in the third round, and many spectators were eager to see a ten year old Uchiha face off against a fourteen year old main house Hyuuga, but Itachi did not particularly care about that. What he did care about was the fact that Akio Hyuuga was one of his teammate's opponents, and said teammate was a cadet branch member. Akio was clearly very arrogant due to his position in his clan and did not even try to fight Itachi's teammate, instead activating the Caged Bird Seal to remind him of his place. While Itachi was not particularly close to his team, a comrade was a comrade, and he was going to make Akio pay.

They stepped forward a few feet from each other as the proctor, Kakashi Hatake, who was giving Akio a very disapproving look, gave the signal for the match to start. Itachi activated his Sharingan and leapt back before Akio could close the distance.

**(A/N: OST Vicissitude plays)**

"Time to prove that the Byakugan is truly superior to the Sharingan," Akio said as he entered his Gentle Fist stance.

Itachi smirked and deactivated his dojutsu and stated, "Sorry, but you are not getting the satisfaction of a dojutsu battle. I'll beat you with my skills as a shinobi, not as an Uchiha. This is more than some petty clan fight, this is an exam, and also me teaching you not to mess with my comrades."

"Fool, you don't stand a chance against me without those cheap pink eyes," Akio arrogantly proclaimed.

"If the Sharingan is cheap, then what is the Byakugan?"

"Do not compare my eyes to yours, Uchiha trash!" Akio shouted as he rushed Itachi, who cast several hand seals.

"That is why I won't use the Sharingan against you, because I have no intention of comparing our eyes. Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"

A blazing ball of fire roared right at Akio, who stopped in his tracks and quickly spun on his heels, shouting, "Kaiten!" His chakra erupted out in the form of a rapidly spinning dome of chakra, which easily repelled the fireball, and Akio smirked as his rotation slowed. That is, until his feet were grabbed by hands that erupted from the ground and Akio's eyes widened as he took in the Itachi still standing in front of him and weaving hand seals, and the one holding his legs. _"He can make Shadow Clones!? He must have copied it from a jonin at some point, but when did he make it and how did he slip it past my eyes!?"_

"Fun fact," Itachi said. "While the Kaiten has high defensive capabilities, one only needs to stop its rotation to stop it, and while it is in use, the user's own chakra blocks out the vision of your Byakugan, keeping you from seeing outside your dome, so you miss any measures taken against it. Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"

Several smaller fireballs blasted into Akio, and he was thrown backward, covered in several second degree burns. With a snarl, he got up and dashed at Itachi, who stood his ground this time. "You will pay for that!"

Both Akio and Itachi clashed in a fight of taijutsu. It was over in five seconds when Itachi jumped over an attack and launched a kick at Akio's head, catching the Hyuuga in the temple and sending him flying into the wall, out cold.

Kakashi declared Itachi the victor, and Naruto and Sauke both cheered along with their mother, and even Fugaku gave a small smile at how easily Itachi had dispatched his opponent.

"What do you think?" one of Sarutobi's advisors asked him.

"Well, he came up with a rather effective strategy after easily figuring out the weaknesses behind Kaiten, and then he was able to defeat a Hyuuga in a taijutsu bout without his own dojutsu, which I have heard was fully mature…" Sarutobi mused. "And he won his previous match too, and easily. I do believe that he has earned his promotion if he gets it. I will have to wait to see what the judges say."

…..

Two weeks later, Itachi walked out of Sarutobi's office wearing the chunin vest.

**A/N: Now for some reviews!**

**FlameDragon14:**

**I will respect your decision on making this a NaruSaku as you have already promised to make Sakura more then some crybaby or useless fangirl. But, if I may ask, if your going to go with a challenge (as you called writing a NaruSaku fic to be) why not take it a step further and give the boys two girls each. Naruto could have both Hinata and Sakura while Sasuke could take Karin and one other. Either way I hope to see you continue writing your stories. **

**rasEnshur1KEn:**

**My response to the suggestion of writing a harem: No. While I can appreciate a decent harem fic that isn't about smut or something like that, I am not the kind of person who wants to write one.**

**Titokhan:**

**I can see the early buildup for the massacre as well (with Fugaku's building frustration), though adding Hinata's kidnapping and its repercussions also would appear to be some foreshadowing for what you have planned.**

**As it relates to the post chapter AN's, Is it possible we'll be introduced to this non-fangirl'ish Sakura before they start the Academy? as if you go the full Naru/Saku ,Sasu/Hina route, it might be best to keep the 4 of them together a lot. **

**Check your PM for another avenue that 'could' be pursued that could open up the pairings a bit **

**rasEnshur1KEn:**

**Yes, they have been introduced at least once before the academy.**

**Guest:**

**No hina or saku way too used **

**rasEnshur1KEn:**

**Sorry, I am going to use Sakura for a pairing with Naruto.**

**Guest:**

**Thank you very much for NOT pairing Naruto with Hinata. You're right; it is overdone and I actually have started avoiding stories that feature it. They're always the same...but pairing her with Sasuke is pretty rare and you caught my attention when you mentioned it. As for Karin...*shudders.* Do you actually like torturing your characters? Lol hey, if you can write it, go for it. I've just never yet read a story where she was written as anything short of deathly obnoxious. **

**rasEnshur1KEn:**

**That does seem to be the more popular opinion.**

**Daisainan Neko:**

**please oh please oh please oh please dont make this SasuKarin i cant stand it! please make it SasuHina *puppy eyes* wait im a neko *kitty eyes* **

**rasEnshur1KEn:**

**(Studiously looks at eyes without a change in expression) Sorry, I am immune after years of living with pets that always act like I starve them. I might make this a SasuHina though, it seems more attractive to me right now.**

**SpectreShepard:**

**Awesome chapter. When do you think you'll get the next one out? **

**I will generally update this story monthly, since I still am focusing on my other story. Chaptes will be getting longer soon.**

**LordCybot:**

**Meh i can deal i guess i personally prefer naruto x fem kyuubi but i guess its just cause i'm weird like that. Cant wait to see the next chapter **

**rasEnshur1KEn:**

**I won't judge, hope this chapter satisfied you.**

**thedarkshark24: **

**May a say Karin is the lesser of two evil their cause I don't know about you but Hinata and Sasuke together make me cringe.**

**rasEnshur1KEn:**

**I hope you don't stop reading if I decide on Hinata, which I am close to. Like I said, it would be an interesting challenge. If you do decide to stop reading based off of that, I can respect that, but please don't flame based off it.**

**So by next chapter, I will have decided who to pair Sasuke with. Any last advice I will appreciate. **

**Read and Review please!**


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